


The World is All Brand New

by SimplexityJane



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-30
Updated: 2016-11-30
Packaged: 2018-09-03 05:04:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8698129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SimplexityJane/pseuds/SimplexityJane
Summary: Lisa Snart got a new family when she was eleven years old. It was, by and large, the best thing that ever happened to her.





	

Watching this particular family home was more difficult than Len had thought it would be. Most cops, even detectives (newly acquired badges, especially) relaxed when they went home. That was the case with this particular badge, but it wasn’t him who was making it difficult to get details. No, that honor went to an eleven-year-old girl who had been placed with the family after her father (finally) died. Even after a year with Joe West, Lisa still had habits that Len had taught her, ways to protect herself.

Lisa ran out of the house with the other little girl – eight-year-old Iris West, Lisa’s new best friend. Len, across the street, felt his heart pick up pace. It was summer, and apparently Iris wanted to do cartwheels on the grass. Lisa did several handsprings herself, showing off her athletic ability.

She wanted to go to the Olympics, a figure skater. Joe West had gotten her classes at the local rink, but he’d also signed her up for gymnastics and boxing classes, a few years ahead of his daughter. Apparently after Lewis had smashed the beer bottle into Lisa’s shoulder last year, her confidence had plummeted. Joe West, (not) widow, was trying to fix Len’s little sister as well as he knew how.

There was a cough, and Len flinched. Detective Joe West raised expressive eyebrows, and Len sighed. He opened the door, letting the detective into his car.

“Snart,” West said. His tone wasn’t as forbidding as it had been the first time he caught Len out here – he hadn’t known who Len was, back then, had thought he was some sort of monster after his girls – but it wasn’t especially warm, either.

“Detective,” he said. He couldn’t control his tone like he normally would. A cop was in his car. A cop was raising his sister – and no matter what anyone said, he would never, _could never_ , trust cops. Especially not with Lisa.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the girls make fools out of themselves. Len wanted to ask, but he never would. Lisa was his life, even if they were separated.

“She liked the bracelet,” West said, and Len’s shoulders relaxed marginally. “Knew it was from you. She lit up like it was Christmas come early.”

The distinct judging note in the detective’s voice made Len turn to look at him. His own eyebrows were expressive, he knew. West snorted.

“That kid over there loves you, Snart. Now, I don’t like you. But I gotta wonder what it means. She says you protected her, and I can’t help but wonder if that didn’t hurt you more than you showed her. You’re still a young man.” At Len’s look, West rolled his eyes. “Yes, this _is_ me telling you you can make something out of your life. I’m only doing it for your sister. Don’t get any ideas.”

“I won’t,” Len said, and if there was more of a snap in his voice than he’d intended… well. West _was_ a cop. Len didn’t trust cops.

Still, there were things Len _could_ do, even if he didn’t think he could ever leave his life now. He got his GED (it was as ridiculously simple and boring as he remembered high school being). He made sure Lisa had a college fund big enough that she could go wherever she wanted (there were scholarships coming in, but it was better to be safe than sorry). He made a bit of a reputation for himself for not killing (Mick was good enough at that for both of them).

“I finally decided. Mechanical engineering, Hudson,” Lisa said, meeting him for once. She was drinking a coke at Saints and Sinners, and he had a beer. No one from their lives was in the bar – it was too early in the day, and Brooke, the young bartender, had helped the less-than-sober patrons out of the bar herself. Lisa was practically vibrating with energy. “But I’m also doing an art history minor.”

Len couldn’t help but smile at her. She was nothing like him, and that was the best thing that could happen in their lives. Even if no one knew they were related – she’d changed her name, with his blessing, last year – he would always be proud of her.

“I’m glad,” he said. Glad she wasn’t in the life, glad she was fundamentally _good_. He was glad he was still in her life at all, to be honest.

He wondered what would have happened if he’d followed his gut instinct, kidnapped Lisa out of the first foster home after he heard about what Lewis did. (Instead he’d called up a favor and put their father down once and for all, but she didn’t need to know that.)

* * *

“Lisa,” a voice called, and she hummed. There was something weird about the estimated output levels of energy in the particle accelerator’s simulations. Dr. Wells would understand that she had work to do, especially if this ended up going somewhere. “Lisa is one of the mechanical engineers who helped design the observation chambers. Which is ironic at this particular moment.”

She brought her head up, and immediately realized why Dr. Wells was being a prick. A very cute guy in a Keep Calm and Han Shot First shirt was looking at her (Rathaway was seething in the background, but that was because he had a type, and Lisa knew it). His hair was tied back, but she had a feeling she could get him to let it down in a more-than-figurative sense. He was blushing already, obviously interested. And normally she would shut that down, since they were colleagues and she’d fought to get a spot here, but he was _really_ cute.

And a Star Wars nerd. Len would definitely approve. Hell, _Barry_ would definitely approve, even though Lisa was pretty sure this guy was younger than _him_.

“Cisco Ramon,” he said, offering his hand. “Also a mechanical engineer.” His palms were warm and rough, like hers. He actually worked, which was another point in his favor. She wondered what he’d made, if he would talk about inventions with her.

“Lisa West. You’re Dr. Wells’s new minion, I take it. Hartley looks like he’s blown a gasket. Good job.”

“What is _with_ that guy?” Cisco asked, ice broken. She let a wide smile spread across her face, and Cisco blushed darker.

“The list of reasons just keeps growing,” she said. “I just sent him some of the data from our simulations. He’ll bitch me out later. Stay for the show.”

“Oh?” Wells asked. She shrugged.

“I’m sure it’s just an anomaly in the equations. He’ll clear it up.” And mock her mercilessly, but that was their thing. They were both catty, even if she was so much better at it than he was.

She didn’t think about the anomalous findings, not even when Wells fired Hartley.

(She should have _looked_. She could have done something. Her father was a detective and her brother was a world-class thief. They could have done something, stopped the disaster from happening.)

When the accelerator blew, she was standing outside the pipeline with Caitlin and Cisco. Ten minutes later, while Wells was being carted away to a hospital and Caitlin was sobbing, she got a phone call. It was Iris, and her voice was thick with tears. Lisa’s stomach fell.

“I have to go,” she told Cisco. He was devastated – they all were. This wasn’t supposed to _happen_. “My brother, my – my younger brother, he’s hurt.” She didn’t have to say that it was their fault. Everyone here was thinking it.

Cisco nodded, and she left him alone with his grief. She knew, unlike Caitlin, that the door couldn’t be sealed from the inside. It wasn’t even a failsafe, just a quirk of the design.

By the time the cab reached the hospital Len had called her, and so had Joe. Len had come to town to see the accelerator turned on because she was his sister (he was also checking up on a job, something they didn’t talk about). He’d gone inside after the storm started, sure everything would be okay. He’d learned about the explosion from the news.

Joe had been on a case. His partner was dead.

Chyre had come to her graduation. Half her tears were for him.

She accepted the hug from Iris, letting her lean into her shoulder and cry. Joe wasn’t there yet, but he would be soon. Barry was… he wasn’t dying. That was what Lisa told herself. Even when they had to keep restarting his heart, relying on a backup generator, she told herself that he would be okay. When he finally stabilized Joe was there, and they were all waiting together. The hospital coffee was shitty, but it was better than having nothing to hold with her hands.

Three weeks later she was watching over Barry at Star Labs. Cisco and Caitlin were still there, and one other man who had worked with Caitlin, but everyone else had quit. Lisa had considered it, Len’s advice ringing in her ears, to always take care of herself first, but she couldn’t leave them, not yet. She focused on repairs, working with Cisco more often than not.

It was enough. It had to be enough.

(Six weeks after the particle accelerator blew, she turned a stack of papers into something that was incredibly similar to gold. The only person she told was Barry, and he was in a coma. He could keep a secret.)

**Author's Note:**

> My headcanon is that in canon Len did kidnap Lisa from her first foster home. There's fourteen years between the actors' ages, and they've been using that as the characters' ages (mostly), so by the time Lewis got sent back to prison after Lisa was born Len was definitely an adult, if not old enough to take care of a preteen, at least in this AU. 
> 
> Further headcanon is that since Central City is apparently in Missouri, canon Len has his GED... for parole reasons! (You can't get parole in Missouri unless you have a high school education or the equivalent.)


End file.
